Electrically welding pipe



June 18, 1935. w. DUDLEY 2,005,579

ELECTRICALLY WELDING PIPE Filed Aug. 28, 1955 I I@.1. If i H y W W H. M M H l M. M

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Patented June 18, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ELECTRICALLY WELDING PIPE Wray Dudley, Mount Lebanon Borough, Pa., assignor to National Tube Company, a corporation of New Jersey Application August 28, 1933, Serial No. 687,185

2 Claims. (Cl. 21910) This invention relates to the manufacture of tion of circumfe'rentially slotted pipe results, pipe from skelp by continuous welding methods. which is possible because there is no break in the It-is now possible to thus manufacture rather skelps side edge portions. long lengths of welded pipe in small diameters It follows that it is possible to efiect a continu- 5 by using coils of strip stock. These long lengths ous production of pipe which constitutes lengths 5 are desirable because of the reduction of waste joined at localized points in line with the weld. always resulting at the start and finish of inter- Manufacturers have assured this inventor that rupted welding operations. it is possible for them to produce saws which Such waste is particularly prevalent in contravel with the pipe and out such localized juncnection with the continuous electric Welding of tions. This produces the lengths desired and '10 pipes because of delay in applying the welding also permits inspection of the weld, since the latcurrent at the start and the interrupting of its ter must also be cut. This last feature further flow before the finish, this being necessary to reduces waste. Other cutting means might obviavoid serious burning of the pipe ends or damously be used.

age to the welding equipment. Resulting tem- Figure 1 is a plan of the new skelp. 15 porarily incorrect values of welding current fur- Figure 2 is a plan of the new skelp when joined ther increase the waste. However, flame welding end to end. methods also involve such waste. Figure 3 is a longitudinal cross-section of the It has generally been considered impractical to resulting pipe. produce long lengths of pipe in the larger diam- Figure 4 shows the pipe after cutting. 20

eters. This is because such pipe is manufactured Fi u e 5 is a late al c s-S t and S ws from skelp which cannot be practically rolled in the pip about to be long lengths and is too heavy to permit its coiling This drawing illustrates one form of skelp, in any event. A further difliculty is the lack of showing a length having one of its ends right ansuitable equipment capable of cutting such large gular and provided with spaced recesses 2 and 3 25 heavy pipe on the fly, this naturally being necesbounded by projections 4, 5 and 6, and its other sary if the pipe is to be continuously produced. end right angular and unrecessed. The projec- By welding the ends of conventional skelp tions 4 and 6 are located adjacent the side edges lengths together a continuous production of elecof the skelp while the projection 5 is adjacent trically welded pipe can'be attained. This overthe skelps center, each projection representing 30 comes the difiiculty of producing adequate skelp the termination of the recess bounded by the lengths, but there still remains the fact that it is am Each sk lp len t m y be butt-w l d t0 impractical to cut the heavy pipe while moving the straight right angular end of the next by at its welding speed rate. It is naturally necessuitable app r as s illustrated y u e 3 5 sary to keep the pipe within such limits of length This welding may be done while the lengths are 5 as will make its handling in the ordinary mill Continu u y P ing throug the p p making possible. machine.

Therefore, one of the objects of this inventor is It is to be understood that the machine, which to provide a method for manufacturing large dis bee g e y referred t y be the 40 ameters-of pipe by continuous welding methods, Conve na Continuous yp which bends the 40 which overcomes the above objections. An assoskelp to pipe form and then electrically or flame ciated object is the provision of a skelp particuwelds it. These operations may be performed larly suited for use with such methods. Other by separate machines. Although the skelp may objects may be inferred from the following dis-. be welded by other means it is the electric welding closure of a specific example of the invention. method which brings the i ve advantages 45 Generally speaking, the invention is characterto Prominenceized in that each of a plurality of skelp lengths When the skelp is thus welded end to end a has one or both of its ends provided with recesses structure results which has two lateral slots at which terminate adjacent its side edges. These these junctions, which extend throughout the lengths are then fastened end to end, prior to majority of the skelps width, and which has conpassage through a conventional forming and tinuous side edges. welding machine, so that a laterally slotted struc- The pipe 1, as produced by the welding machine, ture or skelp having continuous side edge portions is circumferentially slotted and joined in a conresults. This structure is then continuously tinuous length only at the localized points formed formed and welded so that a continuous producby the projections l, 5 and 6. The projections 4 55 and 6 will of course be proximate and will include the longitudinal weld, while the projection 5 will'be diagonally opposite these.

These junction points provide adequate strength to permit the machines handling the skelp in its intended manner, and also form paths for the welding current so its interruption is unnecessary. At the same time, when shallow cuts are made in these localized joining points the pipe will be severed as it leaves the machine, so that easily handled lengths result. This also exposes transverse sections of the weld. Such a severance is illustrated by Figure 4 which showssaw blades 8 just leaving the pipe after performing their function.

The recesses 2 and 3 may be of such depth that exact registration of the saw blades is not absolutely necessary. They may be formed by cutting, punching or any other method which proves desirable. Should it be found that one junction point provides sufiicient strength for passage through the skelp forming and welding machine, the projection 5 may be eliminated and the recesses 2 and 3 joined so there is but one large recess. It is then necessary to make but one cut to sever the pipe into the desired lengths.

- Further, a single length of skelp might be laterally slotted at longitudinally spaced points to produce a structure having continuous edges.

The foregoing may be summarized by saying that the invention consists in making a pipe by producing lengths of. laterally slotted skelp with continuous side edge portions, which may be formed by welding together a series of skelp lengths having recesses in their ends which terminate adjacent their side edges, then in passing this slotted skelp through a machine which shapes it to pipe form and welds its continuous edges together to produce circumferentially slotted pipe and, finally, in reducing this pipe to easily handled lengths by cutting through at portions which are circumferentially adjacent its slots.

It is to be understood that skelp is sometimes called plate, that pipes are sometimes called tubes and that the above summary of the invention is not intended to limit the invention exactly thereto, except as defined by the following claims.

I claim:

l. A method of manufacturing pipe by continuous welding methods, including producing laterally slotted skelp having continuous side edge portions, shaping and welding said skelp so as to effect a continuous production of circumferentially slotted pipe and then cutting the portions of said pipe circumferentially separating its slots.

2. A method of manufacturing pipe by continuous welding methods, including producing a WRAY DUDLEY. 

